Smiling Moon
by Bonnie Fritz
Summary: When Hina comes to the living world to recover her powers, she brings with her a lot of problems. Will Ichigo and his friends be able to help her without getting in trouble? - RenjixOC and other pairings
1. Prologue

**Bonnie's words:** ok, so I'll just say it once: I don't own Bleach or any of its characters, Tite Kubo does. But I do own the characters that are unique to my imagination and this story, so don't steal it hahaha I don't have any idea of how many chapters 'Smiling Moon' will have, but I'll post as soon as I finish writing.

"Bla bla bla" means that someone is speaking

_'Bla bla bla'_ means that someone is thinking

* * *

**Prologue**

They say that friendship develops happiness and reduces suffering by doubling your joy and dividing your grief. And they're right. In the past few months, her heart was falling apart. She was out of her way. Every step she took into the light was followed by two of darkness. And then they showed her the way. They cared about her, they protected her, not because they had to, but because they wanted. They were _friends_. And she wasted all of it.

The hate, the thirst for revenge… she was tired of all that stuff. She knew about her _noblesse oblige_ and was ready to die for it. She would smile and embrace death as seeing an old friend, and with a heart full of good feelings and uncountable memories she would leave in peace.

'_You know'_ she thought while closing her eyes and smiling for the last time _'death seems less terrible when you're tired'_


	2. Strange

**Chapter 1 - In The Night Sky**

The bell rang for the skies of Karakura, announcing that another school day was over. The students started to fill the streets while talking about their plans for the weekend, none of them fighting against Hollows as Ichigo and his friends. It's been a while since they separated from each other for getting the job done. These days, every time they turned around the corner, they found a new Hollow and Urahara seemed to know something about it, but didn't say a word.

_"Yoh, how are the things there?" _Ichigo asked through the communicator.

_"Everything is fine here" _Rukia answered _"I think Sado is having some problem with…"_

_"No, I got it'_"

They were all getting tired, it's been a few hours since they stepped out the classroom and they weren't closer to end their work. There wasn't time to take a breath.

_"I've just finished here"_ Renji said using his shunpo to go straight to the next Hollow _"I'm going to downtown right now"_

_"Do you need some help?" _Uryuu's voice got his attention for a while

_"No, I can handle this'_" he answered.

The sky was already black when the redhead got there. A single Hollow was frying around the buildings with bird winds. But its spiritual pressure wasn't the only different thing about it, but the fact that there was no mask on its face or any hole on its body. It seemed to be searching for something since it wasn't even paying attention on the other spirits.

_"Ichigo'_" he called _"We've got a problem here"_

_"What? You didn't say that you could handle it?"_

Renji rolled his brown eyes and ignored his last comment. That wasn't the right time to pick up a fight.

_"I just found a different one here, and it's probably the only one around"_

_"What do you mean with different?"_ Rukia asked

_"It doesn't…"_

Before he could finish his words, the flying Hollow surprised him with an attack with its tail, throwing him a few blocks from where he was, what cost him one broken bone. Its icy eyes were staring at him with anger, and for the first time Renji could see it better. That thing was a mix of an eagle with a wolf, with large wings and huge teeth coming out from its mouth.

_'Shit'_ he thought as he rose from the ground with his sword on his hands. After a few minutes searching for a weak spot, he decided to try to cut out its wings.

"Roar, Zabimaru" he said, releasing his shikai while running closer to the wolf-eagle, manipulating it as a whip.

But it didn't matter how many attacks Renji gave, the Hollow only screamed in pain while its blood gushed out before attacking him with more strength. When he dropped his guard, it hit him on the chest with its claws and made huge gashes before throwing him far away, breaking a few more bones in the process. After that, Renji became an easy target. He couldn't move his arms and one of his legs, and he had no idea of where his sword was. Apparently, all that thing could do was hit him with his tail and paws forcefully, and without Zabimaru it was enough for beat him.

_'I should had accepted Uryuu's help'_ he thought touching his wounds on his chest to try to make them stop bleeding.

The Hollow had something different besides its physical characteristics. It should already be dead, but it didn't disappeared as always. That thing couldn't be a corrupted spirit.

Renji moaned in pain when he tried to rise from the ground in a failed attempt to run from the final attack. Every part of his body was hurting because of his bones and wounds and all that he could do was wait for death. But it didn't come. The sound of bells echoed down the street and made the thing stop a few centimeters from his body.

After searching for where that noise came from, he found a girl standing on the top of a lamppost wearing weird clothes and grabbing what seemed to be a scepter. It was gold and taller then her, with a turquoise stone floating in the middle of what seemed to be a flower on the top of it. Her dark hair was dancing softly with the breeze like her long white skirt with a blue ribbon tied around her waist that showed her legs, covered with what looked like a pair of white boots with golden details from her feet to her knees, letting only her fingers out touching the ground. She seemed to be an angel by the light of the moon, which was emphasizing the ornamental dark tattoos on her pretty white skin exposed by a white tank top with the same golden details than the others parts of her outfit.

"Get out of here!" Renji screamed, spitting out a little blood when the flying Hollow turned to her grunting high while preparing to attack her.

The girl ignored him and moved her weird object, saying a few words in a different language while the stone was emitting an incandescent light, making the Hollow disappeared in the air. Her spiritual pressure was weaker than before, but it didn't seem to affect her since she jumped to the ground and ran to him.

"Are you ok?" the girl asked helping him to rise.

He nodded, looking into her bloody eyes. There was no sign of fear there. Actually it seemed that she already had done that a thousand times. Renji felt that she was smiling for him with them, since a piece of cloth covered the rest of her face.

"You can relax now. You're safe." she whispered, holding his body "You're _all_ safe"

And as if she said a spell, he fell asleep into her tiny arms.

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**Bonnie's words:** Ok, so I'm not able to do action scenes. Maybe that's why I only write romances haha but I swear things will get better now :) follow Smiling Moon's tumblr for extras (url on my profile)!


	3. Memories

**Chapter 2 - Oh memories, where'd you go?**

When Renji opened his eyes on the next morning, he found himself on his bedroom on Urahara's shop. Everything was calm and quiet, except for Orihime's breath by his side. Apparently she had spent all night taking care of his injures since they didn't hurt anymore and fell asleep next to him with her back against the wall. He sat on the futon slowly, starting to think about last night. Everything was so confusing and undefined, as random photographs on a table. There was a Hollow and a pair of bloody eyes in his mind, coming and going in dark and pointless scenes. A knock on the door took his attention from his thoughts and Rukia entered in the room, followed by Urahara and Ichigo.

"How are you feeling?" the short girl asked while sitting next to Orihime who was already awake.

"I'm fine. Thanks for that, Inoue." the redhead looked over her big eyes, receiving a warm smile.

"Abarai-kun, would you mind to tell us what did you mean when you said that the Hollow from last night was different?" the blond man said, hiding his mouth with his fan as always.

"Did I say that?"

"Yes, you started to say something, but we lost contact before we could hear it."

Renji scratched his head confused. He thought about the Hollow, then about those bloody eyes. But none of them came with what he had to tell.

"I don't remember that." He said, looking to Urahara "Actually, I don't remember anything from last night."

"Uh? How you can't remember anything? You almost got yourself killed!" Ichigo yelled, obviously in a bad mood.

"Probably you hit your head too hard. That would explain why we found you unconscious." Kisuke said, getting closer to him "Is your head hurting?"

He shook his head.

"I didn't forget all of the things. I remember the hollow's physical appearance."

"Interesting." Urahara's brown eyes sparkled under his striped hat "How that hollow was?"

"Well, it looked like a huge wolf, but had wings and feathers like an eagle. And it didn't have any hole or mask on its body. Probably, that was the difference."

"Is that possible?" Ichigo was curious, looking over the blond man.

"Apparently, yes. I've heard about that a few years ago"

"What else do you know?"

"That thing wasn't a hollow." Yoruichi's voice came from the hallway and the purple haired woman appeared in the room "These kinds of spirits are called _Kaiju_. They're spirits who turned into their hearts' form and they can't be killed so easily like hollows."

"I've never heard about that" Renji said

"It's pretty hard to find them on these days. Most of the spirits aren't able to make this transformation."

"Does Soul Society know about them?" now it was Rukia's time to ask, and Yoruichi could almost hear their hundreds of questions.

"Yes, but as I said, it's not common to find them, so there's no need to mention the Kaijus" she said with a short smile

"Probably it was attracting those hollows, but now that Abarai-kun killed the Kaiju and the others are gone, we don't have to worry about them at all."

Suddenly, another flash hit Renji's head like a thunder. He remembered of watching the hollow disappear in front of him, but he didn't do that. Someone did.

"Probably those bloody eyes" he whispered, getting the others' attention.

"What did you say?"

"I didn't kill that… _Kaiju_." He said, listening how that word sounded weird. "Another person did it. I just watch the whole scene."

Urahara gave him a suspicious look.

"So, you're saying that there was another person?" the redhead nodded. "Did you know the person? How was his reiatsu?"

"I don't know. I just remember about a pair of bloody eyes."

Yoruichi and the blond man stared at each other for a while and something inside of him was saying that they probably knew who that person was.

"Do you think that that person erased my memory?"

"Probably."

"But why he or she would do that? And after saving his life! Letting he die would be easier" Ichigo said, getting a slap on his head from Rukia.

"I don't know. But seems we've got a mystery in our hands."

Yoruichi nodded and they began to discuss what they would do next. Only Renji stayed in silence in his own thoughts. There was something behind those eyes. Maybe there was a reason for it to be one of the few things he could remember, or maybe it was just coincidence. Those deep bloody eyes lighted by the moonlight were asking for his help, he was sure about that. But if he or she needed some help, why delete his memories then? He thought about them again, trying to remember the details. They looked kindness and full of hope, but it wasn't free from loneliness and fear too.

_'Nothing that could be a clue'_ he concluded.

The rest of the day passed slowly. Ichigo and the others returned to their routines, letting the redhead alone to take some rest. He tried to sleep a few times, but his thought didn't let him for a second. When the moon was on the top of the sky, the tiredness was stronger and he fell asleep, dreaming with those deep pools of blood.

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**Bonnie's words: **Here it is, another chapter. It's a little short, but I swear they'll start getting longer soon! Actually, I didn't enjoy writing this chapter, only the last part, maybe because I'm too excited for what's coming next haha thanks for the reviews OokamiLover19! love, b.


	4. New Girl

**Chapter 3 - New Girl**

Renji was in a bad mood in the next morning as always, mostly because he had to go to human school. Actually, the problem wasn't on waking up early and spent part of his day with humans, he didn't care for that at all. He hated the fact of going to a school again, since he already had done that a few decades ago. Ichigo was the only one who seemed to enjoy that and made sure to tease him every morning.

"Yo! You're stunning today, Abarai-kun" he said with a feminine tone imitating the girls from their class.

"You're getting better Ichigo" Rukia said, smiling to the redhead in a provocative way "And how's the cocky expression that you give to them?"

"I think it's something like this" Ichigo projected his chin forward with a convinced smile on his lips while prancing his nose a little.

"You're forgetting the cold gaze and..."

"You are _so_ funny!" Renji rolled his eyes before they kissed each other quickly.

The fact that the girl he had loved his entire life chose the substitute of Shinigami didn't annoy him anymore. He totally went over it, but that didn't mean that they could spread their love around while he was close.

"Uh, I have to hurry." He said, deciding that it was time to leave them alone "I have to help Inoue with some math exercises before our classes start".

Ok, so he lied. Inoue was a hundred times smarter than him and didn't need any help. But anything could be an excuse to leave that place as fast as possible.

"See you later" Ichigo yelled a few minutes later, grabbing Rukia's hand and making a different way to school.

Renji waved before turning the corner and put his hands on his pockets, letting the sunshine warm his body. The sky was blue as always, with a few clouds pairing idly on it, nothing interesting in his opinion. A few girls were walking next to him, talking lively about something. Sometimes one of them turned to look at him, but as soon she noticed that he was already staring at them, she blushed and looked away. Actually, he wasn't paying attention on them, he was busy trying to understand why his heart couldn't beat in the same way for them as it did next to Rukia. They all looked nice and were pretty hot in his opinion, but none of them seemed to affect him in a different way.

"Abarai-kun!" Orihime's voice got his attention and he saw her smiling and waving in front of the school main gate.

"Good morning Inoue" Renji said with a grin.

"Where's Kurosaki-kun and Kuchiki-chan?"

"They'll be here in a few minutes."

Inoue nodded and they started to walk to the classroom.

"The school's festival is coming." she said to break the silence. "Are you going?"

"I don't know, I don't like parties."

"Oh, but it's not a party. It's a festival, with good food, activities and fireworks at the end. It's really funny!" her excitement was visible in her eyes.

"You are helping with it, right?"

"Yes. I'm helping with the music. Do you want to join us, Abarai-kun?"

"Uh, no. Thanks" he said.

When they arrived at their classroom, he walked over his seat while the girl ran to her friends. He really liked Inoue, but he wasn't in the mood to enter in her weird conversations. Renji laid on his desk and closed his eyes, trying to disconnect his mind from that world. He ignored the teacher when she stepped into the classroom and started to announce the daily messages, but only when the whole class started to whisper, he sat properly to see why everybody was so anxious. There was a girl next to Miss Ochi, probably a new student. Her hair black as coal was stuck into a high ponytail by a red lace and her skin was white as snow. She seemed to be wearing a man's shirt, since it was bigger than her and its sleeves were bent until her elbows. Her legs were covered by black socks until the middle of her thighs, where it met her gray skirt.

"I'm Hina Kumiko" she said with a soft smile on her lips "It's a pleasure to meet all of you"

But what really drew attention wasn't her size or the color of her skin, but the tone of her eyes, red as blood. They were exactly alike those on Renji's memories. He thought for a moment about the possibility of her being the one who fought with that Kaiju. Her reiatsu wasn't stronger as a Shinigami or a Quincy, actually it was lower than the normal for humans and she didn't look like someone who likes to fight too. She looked like a child, and a child like her couldn't fight against monsters in the middle of the night and delete his memories.

_'It's just a coincidence'_ he concluded, trying to convince himself while his eyes were staring at her.

"Why don't you tell us about yourself, Hina?" Miss Ochi said friendly.

Some students seemed to be more interested on her then they should, practically eating her with their eyes.

"I came from Aomori to stay for a while with my, huh..." the girl stopped for a moment to think a little, apparently choosing the right words to say "_dad_, he's a scientist. And I guess you can say I'm a scientist too."

"Well, welcome to our school, miss Kumiko" the teacher said with a welcoming smile on her face "You can sit next to Abarai over there."

Her bloody eyes ran through the faces and stopped on him. He blushed softly when she gave him a short smile before starting to walk until the seat where Miss Ochi pointed. He didn't notice that he was staring at her with his face completely turned to the girl by his side until their teacher called his name.

"Abarai, is there anything wrong?" she asked in a completely different way that she was talking to the new girl.

He shook his head and the woman came back to her class. With the corner of his eyes, Renji could see Hina with her elbows on the desk and her head resting on her tiny hands. She seemed to be bored while looking at the sky through the window with her mind flying around. Surprisingly, she turned to him and caught his gaze making him blush again and she laughed quietly.

After a short wave, she turned to stare the window again feeling relief.

'_At least he's alright.'_ she thought with short smile playing at the corner of her lips.

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**Dictionary: **This section will appear every time there's a word in the chapter that has a translation.

_Kaiju_ - is a Japanese word that means "strange beast". In my story, it's the real form of spirits' hearts.

_Hina_ - goddess of Polynesian mythology. Sometimes, she's represented as a moon goddess or as a warrior queen. She can be described as the first woman from where were born all of the other living beings on the planet.

_Kumiko_ - Perpetual beauty.

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**Bonnie's words:** yey, I feel like writing these days hahaha new chapter coming soon! Follow 'Smiling Moon' on tumblr for extras (link on my profile)! and thanks for the reviews OokamiLover19, Awen Sofer and Zororenjilover! love, b.


	5. Greetings

**Chapter 4 - Greetings**

The lunch time came quickly. After the bell rang, some students ran to the new girl and started to make lots of questions, without giving her time to answer them.

"What kind of music do you like?"

"Do you have any pets?"

"How about your mom? Do you live with her in Aomori?"

"Do you have a boyfriend?" one guy asked, touching her left shoulder.

"Hey, let's have lunch together!" a short girl grabbed her hand.

"No, come to lunch with me and my friends!" another guy said louder.

"Here, I'll show you the place!"

Hina was confused and her eyes showed the panic she was feeling. She never got so close to so many people and she had no idea of what she should do. Usually, someone kept her away from people to avoid her distress. But now she was alone.

"Het, let the girl breath" a voice sounded louder than the others, making everybody turn to stare the guy with orange hair "You're scaring her!"

The girl sighed relief and gave him a short smile.

"She'll stay here for a while, so you'll have time enough to meet her. Now back off!"

Hina watched the students walk back to their place or leave the class to eat their lunch while the air seemed to go back to her lungs.

"Are you ok?" he said, getting closer.

"Yes, thank you so much."

"I'm Ichigo, and this is Rukia" he pointed to the short girl next to him.

"Nice to meet you" she smiled, her purple eyes on hers. "If they start to annoy you again, just let us know"

She nodded, staring at the couple in front of her. The girl probably had the same size as her, and she was shorter than what she assumed to be her boyfriend by the way they looked to each other.

"Does you father live here for a while?" Ichigo asked.

"Yes, he lives here since before I was born" Hina said searching for something in her bag.

"Oh, really? What's his name? My dad might know him, we're living here it's been a while too."

"His name is Kensuke. But he never leaves his house, he's a little weird." She said, rising from her place with an apple on her hands and a shy smile on her lips "Well, I think I'll go eat outside. Thanks again for saving me."

She didn't wait for their answer. Her steps were fast and short and in seconds she was already gone. Hina hated to lie to the others, especially to those with a good heart. But she had too if she wanted to save their lives. After a few minutes, she found herself sitting under a huge tree alone. She let her body fall on the grass while her eyes were closed and a few memories invaded her mind. Suddenly Hina wasn't in Karakura anymore, but in her home. A little girl was lying by her side with a playful smile on her lips while the others were training a few meters from them. Everything was so calm and seemed to be so right.

"Are you ok?" a sweet voice got her out of her thoughts and she opened her eyes, founding a girl standing in front of her.

"Uh, yes."

The girl gave her a friendly smile and sat in front of her. Her hair had the same color as Ichigo's and her big brown eyes were on her face, not sure about her answer.

"I'm fine, I swear" Hina said again, this time sitting properly and leaning her back on the tree.

"Oh, good. The way you got out the classroom let the others worried." She explained.

"The others?"

"Yes. Uryuu, Sado and I were getting closer, but you ran away before we could introduce ourselves. Ichigo asked me to come and check on you. He and Rukia were worried about you." she explained, giving her another smile.

"I see. Well, I'm sorry about that. It's just… I wanted to breathe some fresh air."

"It's ok, he worries about everyone. I think this is his best quality."

Hina nodded, feeling sorry about her. She could see the way that girl felt about him and she was pretty sure he had no idea of that.

"So, do you want to join us to have lunch?" she asked, rising from the ground.

As much as she wanted to join them, she knew it wasn't right. She couldn't create links with anyone there, especially with _them_. Her bloody eyes went to the untouched apple on her lap and she shook her head.

"Thanks, but I prefer to stay here."

"That's ok, but you can come if you change your mind. We always have lunch on the roof. Oh, I'm Orihime Inoue by the way."

"Nice to meet you" Hina couldn't stop herself from smiling.

"See you, Hina-chan!" the orange headed said before starting to walk back to the building.

She looked to the blue sky and sighed. She felt so lonely there, so far from everyone she loved and carried about. Her memories from the last night she saw them made a single tear run down her cheek, it still seemed to be a nightmare. The way that Haku did his best to try to save her, the panic on Yin's eyes, the hate on Hideko's face… everything made her chest burn.

_ 'I can't be weak right now.'_ She thought, trying to control the storm on her heart_ 'I have to save them'_

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**Bonnie's words:** Orihime is soo sweet. I don't like her at all, but she's the most friendly character that I know hahaha seems that Hina has been through many things before coming to the living world, but where's she from? hahaha thanks for the review Awen Sofer! love, b.


	6. Alone

**Chapter 5 - Alone**

When Hina felt she could handle a few more hours of classes, she rose from the ground and walked back to the classroom. Some students watched her, but she didn't care about them at all. Her mind was far away from that place. She could feel some worried looks from Ichigo and his gang when she put a foot inside the room, but she ignored them and walked straight to her seat in the end of the room and laid her head on her notebook, letting her eyes close until the bell rang announcing that the day was over.

Before someone could have the opportunity of ask to walk her home, Hina packed her things quickly and walked fast to the door, disappearing in the middle on the ocean of students a few seconds later.

The sun was starting to fade on the horizon, giving to her skin a funny orange ton. A few stars could be seen on the sky between the fluffy clouds and she wished she could lay among them and stay there forever, just watching the whole world.

_'Everything would be so much easy'_ she thought as she found a bench to sit in a park. She wasn't ready to go home.

Hina stayed there for a while, just watching a few kids playing lively a few meters from where she was. It was so familiar.

_"Hina-sama, would you like to play with us?" a little girl approached shyly from where she was drinking tea with Haku and Yin._

_"She's busy right now." The guy answered with a cold voice, making her shiver._

_"Don't be rude!" Hina replied, looking to the girl's blue eyes with a smile "A bit of fun doesn't kill anyone, right?"_

_"Yin-chan wants to play too!" the other girl said, referring to herself._

_"But, Hina-sama…"_

_"I already finished here. And I have a few minutes before my meeting with Hideko. So just tell me when it's time to leave, ok Haku-kun?"_

_She rose from her seat and jumped to the grass, holding the girl's  
hand and starting to walk with her while Yin flied around them gracefully. She always felt bad for those kids, separated from their parents with no idea of when and _if_ they would meet again. Because of that she did her best to spend some time with them to play and have fun, trying to relief their pain._

_"Haku-kun is mad" Yin __remarked with a laugh before some kids ran to meet them._

_"Oh, you brought her!" a boy said with a smile, grabbing the hem of her dress "Thanks for coming, Hina-sama"_

_"Yes, thank you!" the others agreed_

_"So, what are we going to do today?" another asked_

_"Huh, I don't know. What do you want to play?" she said kindly while they walked until the huge cherry tree._

Hina came back to the reality when she noticed that the last girl on the park was waving for her with a friendly expression. She smiled and waved back before grabbing her bag and starting to make her way to home. It was already dark and she hadn't another option unless coming back to the little flat.

She opened the door slowly, staring at the dark room in silence. Her protector assured her that she would stay there just for a few days while he searched for a nice place, but she hated it. That apartment made her feel like she was arrested or something. The kitchen, a wall with a sink, a refrigerator and a stove, was embedded in the living room where a small TV and a roundtable were. Her futon stayed in one corner of that same room, sided by a pile of clothes that they gave to her. Only the bathroom was separated, where was a bathtub, a toilet and a sink with a little mirror.

_'Only the essential'_ she thought with a sigh, leaving her bag next to the door and taking out her school shoes.

Hina wasn't hungry, so she decided jump that step and lay on her futon, bringing her knees close to her chest in a fetal position under the sheets. She never felt so lonely in her entire life until that moment, she felt that she wasn't going to make it, that she wouldn't be able to save her friends and before she could notice, tears were running down her cheeks.

_"Stop calling me like that!" Moriko yelled at the blond man sitting on a branch next to him._

_"Why? Don't you like it, Mori Mori?" he smirked._

_"Stop it or I swear I'll kill you!"_

_"I'd love to see you_ try_"_

_"Yes! Mori Mori and Mina-kun will fight! Go go Mina-kun! Go go Mori Mori!" Yin jumped from the top of the tree, obviously enjoying the situation._

_"Can you just please stop? And Yin, please don't encourage them" Hina sighed and closed her bloody eyes, letting her body fall on the grass under the huge cherry tree. It was too early for that noise. _

_"Yes, Hina-sama" the little girl said happily and laid close to her._

_They all stayed in silence for a second, just enjoying another summer day. The sky was blue as always and the wind was soft and warm. Everything seemed to be so right and…_

_"Ok, I'm tired of you! I'm gonna kick your ass just to make you shut your fucking mouth."_

_"Eh? What I've done this time?" Minako said with his usual pacific tone, but Hina knew he was smiling even with her eyes closed._

_It was enough for the dark haired man jump on the blond one. They started to roll on the grass as kids, Moriko yelling bad things while the other was laughing wildly. Yin came back to her favorite branch and was cheering for them._

_'Now_ things seem to be normal' _Hina thought, sitting properly to watch their fight._

_Didn't matter how many times Moriko tried to beat his rival, Minako always won considering that his element was the water. It was so obvious, but he refused to accept it._

_"You should be ashamed of yourselves" A deep male voice came with the wind making everybody stop. "What an inappropriate behavior to have close to the Princess"_

_They all turned to face the guy sitting on the balcony with a bored expression. Hina was the first to move, standing from the ground and taking a few steps forward._

_"Welcome back, Haku-kun" she smiled for those amber eyes, receiving another smile in exchange, making her heart beat peacefully. At that moment, she felt she could handle another day._

Before she could notice, Hina fell asleep.

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**Bonnie's words: **Oh gosh, this chapter was hard to write. I had the main idea, but I wasn't sure of how to use it hahaha but here it is. So, what do you think about Hina's memories? Thanks for reviewing ren-shika-inu15, OokamiLover19 and Awen Sofer :) love, b.


	7. Breakfast

**Chapter 6 – Breakfast at Nihongo**

The sunlight reached Hina's face and she moaned softly, trying to catch the clock with her eyes closed. She got a little annoyed when she noticed that was still five and she had two hours until the school starts. A little groggy, she made her way to the bathroom, almost falling in the process, and stared at her reflex in the mirror. She was a mess. Her black hair now looked like hay and there was no sign of the red ribbon. Her cheeks were pink as her nose, letting her skin whiter than it already was and her bloody eyes showed her tiredness.

"Oh gosh, I'm such a mess" she said to herself, finally noticing that she was still in her uniform.

Without ceremony, she took off her clothes and threw them in one corner before entering in the shower, letting the hot water ran through her body following those familiar dark marks. They danced around her chest, belly and back in graceful arabesques, then going to her arms and legs. She liked them. They were a gift that she received when she was born a few centuries ago. They reminded her who she was. A few minutes later her stomach growled remembering her that she didn't have dinner last night and that she had to put something inside of her mouth as soon as possible.

She wrapped herself in a towel to get a new uniform as she decided to leave early and eat something in a coffee since she never learnt how to cook. It seemed to be better than burning the whole apartment. Hina dressed quickly the gray skirt and the white shirt, still pulling its sleeves, but this time wearing a black pantyhose to cover the tattoos on her legs. She brushed her hair a few times, deciding to let it down reaching her waist.

"Now I am presentable" she said with a short smile before grabbing her bag and leaving.

After a few minutes walking alone, she stopped in front of the brown store with a huge smiling mug on the top on the entering sided by a huge _'Nihongo Coffee'_ in white.

_'This must be the place they told me about' _she thought before opening the front door and hearing a little bell rang.

The place was nice. Everything was so light and… _pink_. The walls and the tables were white while the rest of the decoration was in the most various tones of pink. A delicious smell was coming from the balcony which was filled with different kinds of food. They looked all so delicious and she wanted to try all of them. Two waitress were behind them taking care of the drinks with a huge smile on their lips, it was almost scary. After a few minutes, Hina decided to pick some tea and a _croissant_, only because she liked the way it sounded. Actually, she had no idea of how it tasted. The black haired girl paid for her breakfast and turned to pick a table when she saw an orange haired waving for her in one of the tables, sided by another girl.

"Oh, Hina-chan!" the breasted one called with her tiny voice.

"Orihime-chan! Sorry, I didn't see you were here" she said getting closer to them.

"That's ok. Do you want to sit with us?" Inoue asked friendly as always with a smile on her lips.

Hina's eyes went to the girl next to her. She had a black spiky hair and brown eyes, besides was wearing the same school uniform as they, but she didn't remember of seeing her in the classroom.

"Oh, this is Tatsuki-chan. She's is also in our class, but she was sick and didn't go to school yesterday. Tatsuki-chan, this is the new student that I told you about."

"I'm Hina Kumiko, and it's a pleasure to meet you" she said politely with a soft smile.

"I'm Tatsuki Arisawa, and welcome to out school"

"Thanks."

"So… Will you sit with us?" Orihime asked with a puppy look. She couldn't say no to that face.

"Yes, if it makes you happy, then I guess…"

"Oh, thanks God! I was starting to think that you didn't like me"

Hina giggled with that. How someone could_ not_ like her? She met her a few hours ago and she already loved her. Orihime was that kind of person that everyone likes to stay around because she makes them feel good and special. She could see that that girl had a pure and sweet heart and would die to protect her friends. And that was something that Hina appreciated a lot. Besides, it won't hurt have a quick breakfast with them.

"How can you say that? You're so sweet and all these stuff"

Orihime smiled at her as she watched the new girl sit in front of her and took a bite of her _croissant_.

"This is delicious" she commented with sparks in her eyes.

"This place is awesome, that's why Tatsuki-chan and I come here all the time. You're welcome to come with us too"

"I guess I'll take the offer" Hina blushed softly with a smile on her lips before biting her food again.

"So, new girl, where you came from?" Tatsuki asked as she drank a bit of her coffee.

"I came from Aomori to spent some time with my dad" she repeated her speech from the day before.

"Did you have friends there?" the orange haired girl asked with curiosity in her brown eyes. Hina nodded. "Do you miss them?"

"A lot."

"Did you live there with your mom?"

"Uh, no. I lived there with my…" she said, trying to tell the truth without lying "_sister._ But we had a fight and that's why I came"

"Oh, but you can run away from her. She's your sister" Orihime cried out with the same puppy expression than before.

"I'll come back soon to settle the score with her, so don't worry Orihime-chan" Hina comforted the girl.

They kept talking about random things until they finished their own meals and stood up to start to make their way to school. A few minutes later, Orihime interrupter them obviously uncomfortable.

"So… I wanted to ask you something yesterday, but you went home so fast and I didn't have time to" she said playing with her thumbs "Did you know Renji?"

"Who?" Hina asked confused.

"You know… the redhead that sits next to you. He stayed the whole day staring at you and Ichigo told me that he talked about you when they walked back home."

Tatsuki only watched as the new girl blushed softly and looked to the sky. So he remembered her. The panic invaded her system as she thought about the possibility of them knowing about her troubles. In the worst case, they would ask her for the truth and she would run and scream before disappearing from their lives forever.

_'Yeah, that surely is a good plan.'_ She thought with irony. _'No, keep calm. Act like you have no idea of what she's talking about'_

"Uh, really? And what did he say?" she asked curiously.

"Not too much. He only said that he knew you from somewhere, but he couldn't remember where."

Hina sighed in relief. So he _didn't _remember her, but he probably had some pieces of his memory to think that she was familiar to him.

"You didn't answer her question" the spiky haired said, looking at her suspiciously.

"Uh, no. I don't know him."

"I see…" Orihime whispered, before starting to talk about the tests that would come soon.

Hina made a mental note to check on that redhead later. That _surely_ would bring her problems later.

* * *

**Bonnie's words:** I wrote this one too fast, maybe in one hour or two hahaha but I liked it! Thanks for reviewing and reading Awen Sofer and OokamiLover19! **And please, if you're reading 'Smiling Moon' let your comment about it**. I would love to hear what you have to say :) love, b.


	8. Bonds

**Chapter 7 – ****First Bonds**

"I'm telling you! I could beat you anytime" Renji yelled at Ichigo, beating on his desk obviously annoyed.

"Renji, please, calm down. People are staring" Rukia said with a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"I don't give a _shit_ for them! Your _boyfriend_ started this! Come, I want a rematch!"

"Not now Renji, I don't know about you, but I _really_ have to stay at school for a while" the orange haired boy responded with a bored expression. He preferred a thousand times to be training than wasting his time with math and literature, but he still was a human and there wasn't another way.

The redhead was about to throw him through the window when Orihime entered in the classroom laughing with Tatsuki and the new girl, catching his attention. While the two familiar girls laughed loudly as always, Hina covered her mouth with one hand and her tiny body was shaking softly in silence. He noticed that she used to close her eyes and lowered her head slightly in the process, something that was pretty cute in his opinion. She stopped when she saw that Renji was staring at her and then where the girls were going.

"Hey, Hina-chan! Why did you stop?" Orihime asked, turning to look at her.

"Uh, I don't think it's a good idea."

"Come on! They won't bite" Tatsuki said with a smile.

"No, it's just that…"

"Don't be shy, Hina-chan!"

Before she could do something, the orange haired girl grabbed her hand and dragged her to where their friends were. Hina really wanted to get closer to them, to know and become friends, but it was too dangerous.

"Good morning" she called happily.

"Why you took so long today?" Rukia asked giving her a short smile

"Oh, Tatsuki-chan and I were having breakfast when we saw Hina-chan" she explained, pointing to the short girl behind her "and we started to talk and lost the time."

"I'm sorry for getting you late" Hina said shyly before receiving a warm smile from the rest of the group.

"Don't worry about it, Hina-chan. Oh, I completely forgot that you don't know them!" Orihime slapped herself on the forehead and turned to her friends, starting the introductions "You already know Rukia and Ichigo, so that leaves Uryuu, Sado and Renji" she pointed to each one as she spoke.

"Hi, it's a pleasure to meet all of you." Hina said with a smile, focusing her eyes on the redhead by her side.

He had the same confusing expression as usual, but now she could pay more attention on his features. His crimson red hair was stuck in a ponytail and his dark brown eyes were full of unspoken questions. A white headband covered partially the tattoos on his forehead and she guessed that he had more of them in his whole body by the other black marks on his neck and arms.

"What do you think Hina?" Ichigo asked, making her look at his brown eyes.

"I, uh… I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention" her cheeks got a red tone "What were you saying?"

"I said that we'll eat pizza after school today and I asked if you wanted to come too."

Hina hesitated for a moment, thinking about what to do. She shouldn't go out with them, but she would have dinner anyway and having company would be nice. Besides, she could take advantage to try to figure out what that redhead remembered.

"_Pizza?_" she said tasting the word on her lips and she smiled "Hm… sounds fun."

Before someone could say anything else, Miss Ochi entered in the classroom and everyone walked to their own seats. This time, Hina paid attention on what the teacher was saying and she got surprised about how many things she didn't know. She used to read a lot of human books in her free time, but those stories were so different from this kind of information.

On the lunch time, she ate with the other girls and answered their question in the best way she could. When they asked about something she hadn't any idea, she just told them she used to study a lot and didn't care for all these stuff. Since they believed on her, she just kept her speech. And soon the day was over and she was free to go eat that _pizza_ with Ichigo and the others. Hina didn't know why, but she was very anxious for that.

"You said you're from Aomori, right?" the guy named Uryuu asked while he straightened his glasses.

Hina nodded.

"My grandfather and I used to travel to a nearby town, so I guess I can say that you used to live in a beautiful city"

"Uh, yes. I miss it a lot."

They were walking on the streets together, Orihime a few steps forward with Tatsuki and Sado. Ichigo and Rukia were holding hands while Renji seemed to be a little annoyed, but paid attention on the conversation that the girl beside him was having with the Quincy. Hina could feel his eyes on her face constantly, what made her cheeks get a red tone.

"How long you're friends?" she asked with a smile.

"Well, Rukia grew up with Renji, like Ichigo with Orihime and Tatsuki. Sado came after, just a few years before me."

"Oh, that's nice" she turned to the redhead as Uryuu ran to the busty girl "You two grew up here?"

"No, we came from a different place"

"What kind of place?" Hina couldn't stop herself from asking those questions. She _really _wanted to know him, and she didn't even know _why_.

He wrinkled his nose as the orange haired boy kissed his girlfriend and cursed an 'a different place' to Hina showing that their conversation was over. The girl nodded and they stayed in silence for a while, time enough for him notice that he was rude.

"Look, I'm sorry. It's just that…"

"Don't worry" she smiled briefly "I can see the way you feel about them."

They looked at the couple that barely noticed their presence there and then he turned to her again.

"How do you…"

"I can read people very easily." She explained "She doesn't know, right?"

"No, I didn't tell her anything."

"Everything that matters is her happiness" they said in unison and Hina laughed softly "Yeah, I've already heard that. It's very noble of you"

They stayed in silence again, this time just feeling the cold breeze from the nightfall. Hina smiled softly as he stared at her with curiosity.

"You're different today" he stated, making her turn to see his face

"What do you mean with 'different'?"

"Yesterday you seemed to be sad, you barely talked to anyone and ran from the school when the bell rang. Today, well, you're talking to everyone and smiling, and hanging out with us. You seem to be happy"

"I _am_ happy." Hina said with her eyes on the firsts stars on the sky "You had to pay attention on me to noticed that"

She didn't need to look at him to know that he blushed with that comment and she laughed briefly.

"It's just that… you remind me someone."

His words made her heart skip a beat and her blood froze on her system. The air seemed to be gone from her lungs while she stared at him with wide eyes.

"Well, actually it's not a person._ Your eyes_… they're almost the same… from a dream"

"A dream?" Hina asked suspiciously with one eyebrow raised

"Yeah. I had it a few nights ago, but I don't remember nothing but a pair of bloody eyes. Like yours."

She stared at him in shock for a few minutes before he laughed loudly, getting the others' attention for a moment

"You must think that I'm a weirdo." He said scratching the back of his head.

"Maybe it meant something" the words ran off her mouth before she could think or stop them. That made her want to slap herself.

"Do you really think that? I meant… it's just a dream"

"Who knows." She answered as they finally reached the restaurant, ending the subject.

It was a nice place near Ichigo's house. Apparently, the owner knew his father or something, but Hina didn't paid attention on his explanation. She was too fascinated with the decoration and wasn't paying attention in anything that wasn't the music from the fifties playing in the background. The walls were full of posters from different American actors and singers with neon lights. Even the waiters were dressing with leather and cute dresses as they ran through the tables with rollerblades.

"This place is awesome!" she said with a huge smile on her lips, making everybody laugh

"Yeah, that's why we came here all the time. And the food is great too!" Rukia said with a hand on Hina's shoulder.

They sat in a big table in one corner and started to order their food. Orihime wanted to get the same as her for the new girl, but after a few minutes of conversation, she gave up and let Renji chose for her.

"What do you think about this pizza with cheddar?" he asked with the menu on his hands.

"Uh, _pizza_…" she said that word again, finally seeing a small picture of the food they were talking about.

"Yes, you don't like it? Because we can get a hamburger too or…"

"No, it's just that I've never tried it before" she blushed a little, happy for the others being so busy with their own orders.

"Really? Well, I hadn't tried it until a few months ago, but I can tell you that it's pretty tasty"

"So I want this pizza with cheddar" she smiled at his brown eyes, deciding that she would trust him.

Of course the others noticed and were with their heads full of questions for the new girl. But they let them for later. Now she seemed to be too busy by having some fun with all of them. And apparently, she _really _needed that.

* * *

**Bonnie's words:** This chapter took more time than I thought it would but here it is. I don't think it made much sense, but I hope you can understand it! I'll try to update before July at least twice, but I'm not promising anything! So, let me know what you think (: And thanks for all _Awen Sofer_ and _OokamiLover19_. love, b.


	9. Conversations

**Chapter 8 – Conversations**

"This is amazing" Hina smiled to the redhead beside her with sparkles in her eyes. She looked like a kid on Christmas morning with a slice of pizza in her hands and her lips full of cheese. That scene made the others laugh of her.

"How you've never tried it?" Ichigo asked

"As I never learnt how to cook, I depended on my cooks to eat and they never did it to me."

"Wow, do you have someone to cook for you?" this time it was Tatsuki's time to speak with surprise in her face.

"In Aomori, yes."

"And your father is cooking for you here?"

"I barely see him, he's always too busy. So I just go to some place near my apartment and buy some food." Hina explained before bite her slice again.

"I thought you lived in a house, Hina-chan"

"No, my father lives in one. He said I would probably want my own space, so I'm staying in a little apartment"

"If you need company, just call me Hina-chan. You can stay with me, and I can cook for you!" Orihime said with a genuine smile.

"Inoue, not everyone has the same taste for food as you" Rukia laughed shortly before turning to the new girl "Trust me, you'll want to run back to your own house"

"Oh, but Rangiku-san likes it." The orange haired girl answered

"Matsumoto doesn't count, she's weird" Renji said with a bored expression and the others started to laugh.

Hina had no idea of who was that _Rangiku_, but Orihime seemed to enjoy her company. They started to talk about random things again and she ate the rest of the slice in her hands before grabbing another one. She could easily get used to that _pizza_.

"Hina-san, you said that you used to live with your sister, right?" Uryuu asked and the girl nodded "So, how is she?"

"Hideko is… hard to deal with. Actually, I never spent so much time with her since she hated me."

"What? _Why?_" Ichigo seemed to be surprised with that. "How someone can hate your sister?"

Hina bit her lower lip while she decided if she should tell them or not. She was told to lie when asked about her life, but she had to tell someone what was inside of her mind at some point. Every second with those thoughts kept only for her was starting to drive her crazy. Her eyes ran through their faces a few times before she concluded that she could trust them.

"She always wanted to be the only daughter and she cursed me for being born. Hideko thinks that I want to take everything she has."

"And do you?"

"Of course not! We share our rights equally, so I don't need_ and_ don't want to take anything from her since I already have it."

"I see." The orange haired boy said ending the conversation.

The deserts came and none of them had said a world and that was obviously annoying Orihime.

"How about your friends Hina-chan? Did you talk to them since you arrived?"

She shook her head before eating a piece of her chocolate cake.

"They don't want to talk to me" she said, adding mentally _'Or at least they can't be seen talking to me'_

"Did you fight with them too?"

"Nope. It's just… it's complicated." Hina sighed heavily, making them realize that the subject 'friends' was restricted.

They ended their deserts and soon everybody was standing outside the restaurant saying goodbye to each other.

"Thanks again for inviting me, Ichigo" Hina said with a huge smile on her lips "it's been a while since I had so much fun like today"

"You're welcome to come on the next time."

"Yes, you're pretty nice Hina-chan" Orihime agreed and gave her a hug "and I'm sorry for asking you about things that you didn't want to talk about"

"It's ok. It doesn't bothers me at all, it's just not a subject that you bring to the dinner table"

"But if you need someone to talk to, well, I would like to hear what you have to say."

"Yes, the same for me" Rukia said from under his boyfriend's arms

"Thanks, but maybe later"

Hina received a smile from them again and started to make her way to the apartment, taking a few minutes to realize that someone was walking behind her.

"Are you following me or something?" she asked as she turned to stare the redhead a few meters from her.

He was with his hands on his pockets and his eyes grew wide with her question.

"What? No! My home is this way." Renji couldn't help but laugh with that "You really must think I'm a weirdo to say that I'm following you"

"Oh, no! You're fine to me. I'm sorry, it's just that I didn't know you that you lived around here too."

"Actually, I don't. I'm staying with a friend. But he lives a few blocks from here"

"I see."

"Do you mind if I walk with you?"

She smiled for him and shook her head before they started to walk side by side in silence. It was a great night. The summer was already over, but the wind still had some warmth on it. The sky was full of starts, and since there weren't any clouds to hide them, Hina could watch them as always.

"Why are you smiling?" Renji asked, making the girl notice that her lips were curved into a silly smile.

"The stars." She laughed in her cute way and stroke her own hair "They make me feel happy, it's like I'm home again"

"In Aomori?"

"Yes. I used to run away from everybody and sit on the roof to watch them alone. That always made me feel better. But now that I'm living in an apartment, I don't have a roof to stay."

"If you need one, I'm sure my friend can borrow us his." He said blushing softly while he scratched the back of his head . "What do you think?"

"What? _Now?_"

"Yes, why not? We are already here and it's not that late. Besides, the weather will change soon and we'll not be able to see a sky clean like this"

"I don't know…"

"Come on! I drive you home later"

Hina was a little hesitant, but something in his brown eyes made her agree with him. A few minutes later, they were both standing in front of a white candy shop and she couldn't hide her surprise.

"Do you live _here?_" the girl raised an eyebrow while her eyes were still staring at the plate where it read 'Urahara shop'

"Yes, why?"

"Nothing. But are you sure he doesn't mind? I mean, you should talk to him first and…"

"Don't worry Hina, now come." Renji grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the house while she protested and tried to get away from there as quick as possible.

She would be in serious problem if they found out that she was there, with _him_.

He gave her assistance to climb the walls and soon they were sitting side by side under the open sky. At that moment, Hina forgot everything. Why she had to run away from that place, why she had to get strong and principally why her head was leaning automatically to rest on Renji's shoulder. He blushed violently this time with his eyes on the top of her head, but soon he relaxed and started to enjoy their view. They stayed like that for a while without exchanging a single word and didn't realize the time pass, or their observer standing behind them.

"Oh Abarai-san, seems that you finally got a girlfriend" the man said with his silly tone, making both of them jump on their places.

"Urahara-san! No, this… this is not my, uh… girlfriend" the redhead said totally embarrassed.

"She isn't? But you two seems to be so close!" he stared at her discreetly in a deadly way that made her blood freeze in her system.

"She's the new girl from my school that I told you about, Hina Kumiko"

"What a beautiful name for a beautiful girl" he said and took of his stripped hat, now with a friendly smile on his lips "Nice to meet you Hina-chan, I'm Urahara Kisuke"

"Uh, hi" the girl bit her lower lip ignoring his glare.

_'Oh gosh, why did I agree with this? I'm _totally _dead now' _she thought before she started to try to come back to the ground with a weird expression, a failed attempt to smile that only showed her panic.

"Renji, thanks again for bringing me here, but I'm going home now."

"What? No, stay little more"

"It's… not a good idea." She looked at the man with the corned of her eyes and saw his serious expression. That made her hurry even more. "My head is hurting and… uh, my dad wants me to call him to tell that I'm safe at home, and well, and I don't want to do that too late because he might be asleep and I'll awake him."

"Ok, so let me drive you home"

"No, thank you. You're already here and as I said, it's too late. And I don't want you to get in any trouble"

She kept saying words that didn't make sense without giving him time to answer and then she just ran from there, like she just had seen a ghost or something. At that moment, she didn't bother herself thinking of how weird and ridiculous she looked like.

Urahara just stayed in silence watching her disappear with his face covered by his fan.

"She seems to be nice" he said before leaving the roof and entering in his shop.

Renji stayed there trying to understand what just happened and why she ran like that.

* * *

**Bonnie's words:** So here it is, another chapter :) Oh, seems that Urahara knows Hina and she's probably hiding something about him. What is the relationship between them? How and when they meet each other? These are good questions, right? hahaha thanks for reading and reviewing ookamikage14, Awen Sofer and OokamiLover19, you are amazing! I'll try to uptade again before next saturday. love, b.

**Important note:** I'm not sure if I'll be able to write in July since I'll travel to the USA in an exchange program and I don't know if I'll have time. But I swear I'll try ok? I'm _really_ sorry about that /:


	10. Preparations

**Chapter 9 – Preparations**

Hina spent the whole night thinking in an excuse for her actions and ended up with two dark circles under her eyes that made her look like a zombie, specially with her pale white skin and bloody eyes. When the morning arrived, she didn't have any clue of what she should say to the redhead. All of her ideas were silly and even a child wouldn't believe in them. Then she concluded that she was horrible at lying to the others if she was the one who had to choose what to say.

When she entered in the classroom, Renji was the only one that already got there and seemed to be bored by the way he stared at the sky. His eyes met hers as she walked through the chairs to reach her seat and he opened a smile that made her heart beat faster.

"Hey Hina" he greeted in a cheer tone while she sat in her seat beside him

"Good morning!"

"You look like a mess" he stated, looking to her head to toe and holding a laugh

Hina really was a mess. She wasn't paying attention earlier and ended up buttoning her shirt wrong, letting a single button in the end of it alone. Her hair wasn't totally brushed and was tied into a ponytail that was falling apart while her eyes had a tired look.

"I didn't sleep last night" she said with a sigh

"Really? Why? Is that something bothering you?"

"Oh, no! It's just that I had a lot of things to think about"

"I see" he smiled shortly at her "Let me know if I can help you with something."

She nodded and started to stare at him with a suspicious look. Why he didn't make any comment about last night? Did Urahara tell him anything? Or the real question that started to bother her: Did he even notice the way that she ran away? Hina wasn't sure of why she was worrying about that, but she did and _a lot_, more than she should since she wasn't there to fall in love with a Shinigami. She shook her head quickly to clean up her thoughts and turned to stare the sky as him earlier. It wasn't sunny as the other days, but cloudy and a bit cold.

"I'm sorry about yesterday" she finally said after a group of girls entered in the classroom

"For what?" Renji raised an eyebrow and she turned her head to look at him

"Well, the way I left wasn't nice. I think I should apologize for that."

"I didn't worry about that, you said you were late right? But let me drive you home next time. I would sleep better knowing that you're safe at home." He said and smiled while his cheeks got a red tone. "This city is not that safe as Aomori."

Renji was obviously referring to the Hollows that constantly ran through the streets, but he didn't know that they wouldn't touch her even in her human form. For him, Hina was just a pretty and smart high school girl that was too weak to protect herself. At least for now, he was right.

"Uh, ok. Thanks, and I'm sorry for worrying you" she said and blushed, turning to stare at the sky again with a smile playing on her lips.

They stayed in silence for a while, both of them looking at different things. Actually, the redhead was looking to those girls that arrived a few minutes ago but not really seeing them. He was too deep in thoughts to even notice that they were staring back and gossiping, obviously about him. He was trying so hard to understand why he felt so connected and attracted to Hina in only three days. They barely talked, but he felt like he knew her from centuries, but at the same time he didn't know anything about her. What she liked, what she disliked, her dreams and hopes… Those things seemed to matter and he wanted to know more about her.

"Abarai-kun! Hina-chan!" Orihime's voice called happily their names and they turned to see the orange haired girl jump until where they were "You're early today"

"Yeah, I woke up early today and didn't bother myself to check the time" Hina smiled at her

"The same for me" he added, looking at her with the corner of his eyes

"Oh, I see. I don't know if they already told you Hina-chan, but this weekend we'll have a school festival." Orihime said, now turning completely her attention to the new girl "And I would love if you helped us to set things in time. What do you think?"

"School festival?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yes! Well, you know, lots of good food and music, people from different ages having fun together… It's really nice!"

"Oh, I already went to something like this!" Hina opened a smile, remembering the celebration of her and Hideko's birthday. "I would like to help for sure!"

"Great! So today we'll stay after school to set up the stage where the bands will play and organize the schedule for the day." The orange haired girl smiled, giving her a quick hug "Oh, I'm so happy that you'll join us! So I'll see you later Hina-chan!"

And with that, she jumped away to the group of girls where Tatsuki was. Hina couldn't help but laugh at that.

"Are you going to help her too?" she asked to the redhead with a smile.

"No, I don't like this kind of stuff" he answered wrinkling his nose.

"Oh, really? Why?"

Renji stared at her bloody eyes and felt breathless for a moment. Like always, they were intense and full of curiosity, but somehow they looked like those from his dreams. Those sad and lonely eyes became something usual in his sleep and were starting to make him feel bad for not being able to make the person that they belonged feel better. He had to shake his head a few times to clear his thoughts and then focused on her again.

"Let's just say I have bad memories" he explained, again thinking about his last festival when he saw Rukia and the carrot top kissing and ended up drunk in a bar naked with Matsumoto, Ikkaku and Yumichika.

"Well, I'll not ask you what happened. But you can tell me if you like too." She smiled again before a soft sight "But if you just run away from those festivals, you can loose a good opportunity of getting new memories! You don't know, maybe you can even get good ones!"

"I don't know…"

"You know that I'm right" Hina rolled her eyes and stretched her arm to reach his hand and she stroke it softly with a laugh "C'mon, I swear it will be fun! And besides, I don't want to be alone there!"

"So that's why you want me to help them!" he joked, joining her with a loud laugh

"Yeah, it's something like that. But I like your company too, and someone will have to teach me about how to organize a school festival"

Hina smiled at him before getting a red tone as a tomato when she noticed that her hand was still upon his, taking it away and turning to stare the blue sky while he scratched the back of his head with embarrassment.

"Ok, you convinced me. I'll help you" he finally said, making her look at him and they smiled for each other.

* * *

The rest of the day was normal. Hina sat under the trees with Orihime and the other girls and they talked about silly things during lunch while Renji stayed with Ichigo and the other guys on the roof just staring at them. The redhead and the new girl didn't change a word since that moment before Miss Ochi entered in the class and ended up with their conversation. Sometimes one caught the other staring by the corner of their eyes and they both blushed, turning to different sides with a soft smile playing on their lips. When the bell rang, they walked side by side until the soccer field where Orihime said they needed help, and again they stayed in silence.

"Hi Hina-chan, thanks for again for coming!" the orange haired girl said happily as always and wrapped her arms around Hina "And you even brought Abarai-kun! I've already invited him to help but he denied, but I'm not surprised that he came with you!"

"Yeah, he'll support me since this is the first time that I can really organize a festival" she explained with a soft blush on her cheeks and smiled looking over the redhead's face "I'm sorry for making you stay after school"

"Don't worry. Trust me: it's better than go home." He said, thinking about Urahara and Jinta that were always getting him out of his nerves. "Now what do we have to do?"

"Hmm…" Orihime thought for a while with her pointing finger in front of her lips. "For now you two could start carrying the food in those boxes to the gym. Someone will help you later."

They nodded and made their way until the pile of boxes that were by the side of the building. Renji just sighed when he saw the size of it while Hina made her hair into her usual high ponytail with the red ribbon. When she went to grab one of the boxes, she felt a warm big hand hold her wrist and she turned to stare at Renji's brown eyes.

"Do you really think that I'll let you carry them?" he asked with an eyebrow raised

"Yes, why not? Orihime needs as more help as she can get!"

"They're too heavy for you. Just wait that I can do it alone and…"

"Do I look like that weak?" she said with a shocked tone as she was offended "Oh, c'mon Renji. I bet I can carry more boxes than you."

"With those arms? Yeah, _for sure_" he laughed loudly "Just sit under those trees and wait until I finish here. It won't take too much time"

Hina rolled her eyes and grab one of the boxes without any difficulty, starting to walk until the gym's door immediately before he could say anything else. She was happy that she could use more strength than the usual and soon she was carrying three of them at the same time while Renji just stared at her in shock. She wasn't sweating and didn't seem to be tired, and apparently she could handle a few more boxes.

"Are you some kind of super woman or something?" he asked when she came back to grab the last box. That comment made her laugh.

"Just because I'm stronger than you doesn't mean I'm a super hero."

"Stronger than me? You're stronger than _Chad_! Do you know what that means?"

"You're overacting!" she rolled her eyes, sitting beside him under one of the trees "But yes, I am stronger than Chad."

_'I'm stronger than everyone you know'_ she added mentally, giving him a smile

A soft wind ran through them and her fringe fell on her face, making her focus on try to take it away from her face. While she did that, Renji watched the scene with a silly smile playing on his lips. It didn't matter if she really was that strong, she seemed so helpless and innocent and he felt the need of protecting her from everything. He wanted to understand why he felt that way, why he felt so connected to the new girl that he met three days ago and had barely talked to.

Unconsciously, his hand rose from the ground until he touched her forehead and took the hair away. Hina's bloody eyes focused on his brown ones while his fingers slid to her chin.

_'So helpless… so innocent'_ he kept thinking, approaching his face from hers without looking away.

"Renji, what are you…"

Before she could finish it, her eyes widened as his lips met hers in a surprisingly brief and gentle kiss. At that moment, she felt breathless and seemed that she was floating on the clouds while the butterflies started to fly on her stomach. She had never been kissed before, but her body apparently knew exactly what to do. Her hands when straight to his neck where her fingers could tangle in his crimson red hair. She let her eyes closed while she simply enjoyed that moment, trying to memorize the way she felt. It was different from everything she had experienced in her entire life and she was already addicted to it. Her heart was beating like a hammer as he pulled her closed, holding one of her hands as the other stroke her cheek softly. After a few minutes, they broke apart and all the blood of Hina's system went to her face, turning it as red as a tomato. She avoided his gaze while she rose from the ground and turned her face away

"I… I guess I'll see if Orihime needs some help" she said and started to walk away.

Why every time they were together she had to run away without looking back?

* * *

**Bonnie's words:** Hey ladies and gentlemen, here it is: a brand new chapter. I enjoyed my flight to the US (that took about 16 hours) to write a few things, than I decided to sleep a little late here everyday to write too and keep this story as updated as possible. This is a long cute chapter and I hope you guys liked it as much as I liked to write it. Please, let me know what you think! And thanks to my lovelies OokamiLover19, Awen Sofer and ookamikage14 for all the love, I really appreciate it! love, b.


	11. SORRY

Sorry guys, but this is not a brand new chapter.

Actually, this is an apologize for disappearing for about a month.

I'm back home, but my classes already started and I'm full of stuff to do as this is my last semester in high school (final tests, college aplications,...)

In my defence, I would like to say that I already wrote the new chapter three times, but it never seems to be acceptable, and now I'm almost finishing it for the forth time and I swear that I'll post it soon. So please, be patient.

Well, I guess that's all I have to say. Thanks for the messages and reviews too!

Love you all, b.

ps: I'm really REALLY sorry ):


	12. Twice

**Chapter 10 – Twice**

When Hina reached Orihime, she was breathless. Her heart was still beating faster because of the kiss, but the main reason was that she started to run without even noticing in the middle of the way.

"Hina-chan, are you ok? Looks like you saw a ghost or something…" the orange haired girl asked with concern as she touched the new girl's back while she tried to breath

"What? Oh, yeah! Everything is fine. Renji and I just finished with the boxes" she said and smiled, still breathing heavily "Is there anything that I can do now?"

"You and Renji could…"

"No!" she interrupted with widened eyes surprising her friend "I mean, I think that if we do different things, the job would be done soon"

"Oh, ok. Then you could just go help the boys with the coffee that they're organizing. They are in our classroom."

"They'll be taking care of a coffee? Are you sure about that?" she laughed, letting her imagination flow.

In her mind, she pictured Sado, Uryuu and Ichigo wearing maid outfits in different colors full of ribbons and bows, smiling politely and walking around with a tray full of sweets.

"Yes, as they took so much time to decide what they wanted to do, the last thing that remained was the coffee. So they had to take it" Orihime explained, giving her a smile "But I know that you'll help them with it"

"I'm not sure about that. I don't know how it works" she confessed scratching the back of her head

"Don't worry. Only your presence will be very useful"

Hina raised an eyebrow in confusion but nodded and made her way to their classroom. While she walked through the hallways, she thought about the redhead and about the kiss they shared. With the tip of her fingers, she touched her lips and a silly smile spread across her face as she remembered their moment together. His hands against her skin made her feel like she was floating between the white clouds in the sky, they were soft and kind, like she was some kind of a doll that could break in his arms anytime. Besides that, remind of the kindness in his chocolate eyes made her heart beat a skip. The way they looked into hers, like he was about to reach her soul, like he could kill himself just to save her, made her smile even more. The only thing was: how she was going to face him again? Would she have the courage to talk to him again?

"Hina-chaaaaan!" Keigo screamed, taking Hina out of her thoughts and jump where she was while he approached "What are you doing here?"

She blinked a few times trying to situate herself, finally noticing that she was already in front of their classroom, standing like an idiot in front of the closed door.

"Uh, hi! Orihime told me to come and give you a little help" she explained shyly.

"A feminine touch, that's what we needed!" he screamed in excitement and slammed the classroom's door open, getting the boys' attention "I got the answer to our problems!"

Said that, he pulled Hina by the wrist and hugged her by the shoulders while she blushed hardly for being the center of attention. All of the boys had stopped in their places and were staring at her.

"Finally! As you're a girl, you can give us your female opinion to decide what we should do! What do you think?" another guy said, getting closer to them and pulling her to where all of the papers were as she gave him a short nod.

She was a little surprised with the fact that they had so many different ideas and she listened carefully to each one of them. When Mizuiro told her about his idea of a romantic theme for the couples, she thought about Renji again. She really wanted to go to that romantic coffee with him.

"So, what do you think?" he asked her with eyes full of hope and she gave him a warm smile.

"I think it's a good idea. You know, the couples would love, and besides the others can bring someone special to them. We could even be their cupids or something" she explained, looking around to see everybody's expressions

They all seemed to be a little hesitant about it. It was obvious that the boys didn't want hearts and pink everywhere, but it was better than a super hero coffee.

"You know… a lot of girls would come here alone too. Girls like these stuff" she commented, watching as they started to smile and nod at her

Hina couldn't help but laugh. Boys are just boys after all.

* * *

Renji was not sure how many hours had passed since Hina had run away from him, but he hadn't moved an inch since that and didn't feel like doing it now. He couldn't help but think that he had crossed the limits and offended the girl that he barely knew, and now she was probably scared. He let his body fall on grass with a sight and scratched his arms before putting them behind his head.

For the first time in months, his head wasn't full of Rukia and Ichigo images. He was too focused on Hina's features. He never noticed that her face seemed to have a heart shape that matched perfectly with her expressive bloody eyes. They had an uncommon dark crimson color and were partially covered by her bangs black as coal. And besides the tone of her skin, pale white as snow, she always looked like healthy and had a soft blush in the apples of her cheek, especially when she smiled. He noticed that she was always wearing a soft one on her lips, making her as perfect as a work of art. And besides her beauty, she was smart too. She never seemed to pay attention in what the teachers were saying, but she always answered their questions right without even hesitating. Hina was kind, polite, sweet…

"Oi, Renji!" Ichigo yelled while shaking his hand in front of the redhead's face trying to get him back to earth.

He blinked a few times to situate himself, finally noticing his friend's presence right where Hina was sitting before. He felt a little annoyed for being interrupted.

"What do you want?" Renji asked with a scowling expression.

"Nothing, I was just walking around and saw you here"

"And…"

"And nothing, I just decided to stop here, but you were all sights and deep in thoughts. Is everything alright?"

"Yes man, everything is fine"

"Yeah, right. I can see it written in your face." He joked

Renji sighed heavily and closed his eyes. He wasn't in the mood of talking with the carrot top, but maybe he could be any help.

"I kissed Hina" he said suddenly, feeling his Ichigo turn his head sharply beside him and he guesses his eyes were widened too.

"What? When? _How?_"

"You know how's a kiss, I don't have to explain you that."

"Don't be a smartass. You know what I mean." he said dryly, leaning his head on the tree trunk

"I don't know what gave on me. In one moment we were talking, and in the other, I was kissing her."

Ichigo started to laugh with that. He kept trying to picture the scene, but he couldn't see Renji giving the first step. Of course, it was obvious that they would ended up kissing each other any time, he had noticed the way they looked at each other, but he would never guess that it would be so soon.

"And how she reacted?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"She kissed me back. But then, she ran away." Renji sighed and opened his eyes to stare the top of the tree. "She must hate me now, or think I'm a perv"

"In fact, you_ are_ a perv. But I doubt that she hates you now" Ichigo said before a quick laugh

"But she ran away!"

"So? You kissed her suddenly. She wasn't waiting for that for sure, so she probably didn't know what to do and ran in an impulse."

"Do you think so?"

Ichigo nodded.

"When I kissed Rukia for the first time, she wasn't expecting for it too, and he punched me in the stomach when we were done. You should be thankful that she didn't hurt you."

Renji wrinkled his nose with the mention of that scene, but still giggled when he thought about Rukia hurting him.

"It's typical of her" he agreed.

"But still, you should apologize to her, you know, for invading her space" Ichigo said and raising from the grass "I'll go see if Orihime needs anything else before Rukia gets here and grab both of us by the ear for not doing nothing. See you later"

The carrot top waved before putting both of his hands behind his head and starting to walk to where everybody was, letting Renji alone with his own thoughts. Now, he had to think about something to tell Hina when he finds her.

* * *

"Thanks again for helping us, Hina-chan" Mizuiro smiled at the black haired girl while trying to keep Keigo away from her "I know it wasn't easy"

"Don't worry. I had so much fun!" Hina returned the smile, turning to grab her bag.

It had been a long afternoon. They had to work hard to decide and prepare _everything_ before the end of the day. At least now they had all the decoration and the menu done, including the clothes the boys agreed to use and how they were going to set the tables.

"Hina-chan, tomorrow you'll help us putting everything in the right place, right?" Hiroki, a blond guy who was part of the soccer team, asked while Hina walked until the door, making her stop and nod at him.

"Count on me!" she laughed and waved to the remaining boys before walking away from the classroom.

The school was already empty when she left, letting the sun touch graciously the hallways without any interruption. Instead the noisy people talking out loud, Hina could hear only her steps on the cold floor and a few birds singing outside on the trees. She stopped to change her school shoes before leaving, enjoying the pause to put her jacket to protect her from the cold wind from the beginning of fall. Before she reached the exit, Hina stopped on her tracks when she noticed a tall figure a few meters ahead.

"Renji" she whispered, walking a few steps to get closer to the man standing in front of the school gate.

The redhead had his hands in his pockets and seemed to be deep in thoughts while he kept his chocolate eyes glued to the orange sky. She called him again, this time louder, and his crimson hair flew in the air when he turned to stare the slim figure standing behind him.

"Hina" he opened a faint smile after tasting how sweet her name sounded through his lips, but it soon disappeared as he remembered the reason for being there until late.

She was probably mad at him, maybe scared, and he had to apologize. But the speech he took the whole afternoon to memorize vanished from his mind as his eyes met her bloody ones. They stayed in silence for a while, just looking at each other. Sometimes, one of them opened their mouth to say something, but no words came out and soon they closed it.

"Hina, I…"

"Renji." They started to say at the same time, making both of them laugh nervously. She took off her bangs from her eyes before keep saying "you first."

"I…" he started to say but stopped to take a few beep breaths and gather some courage while scratching the back of his head and looking away "I just wanted to say I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"For… kissing you. I just… I don't know what got into me. I know I must have scared you, but I swear I'll not do that again. _Never._ Just… don't be mad at me." Renji said frowning with his eyes on hers, trying to get every emotion that could pass through there.

Hina couldn't help but laugh at his behavior. He seemed more embarrassed than anything, and it was written in his face that he didn't regret for kissing her at all. Yes, he looked worried about her reaction and thoughts about it, but he would probably do the same thing if he had the chance.

"I'm not mad at you." She finally said, giving one step in his direction and touching his cheek with the palm of her hand while a shy smile spread across her face "I supposed to be the one apologizing here. I ran away from you the whole day and it's my fault that you feel guilty. I shouldn't have acted like that."

"I shouldn't…"

"Renji, I liked it." She cut him while her hands reached for his. "You just… surprised me. That's all. I'm sorry for making you think those shitty things, but I'm… I'm happy that you did that."

The redhead's eyes widened with her words as her bloody ones went to her shoes and her cheeks blushed violently. Without thinking or saying a single word, Renji took her face between his hands and lowered his until their noses were inches apart from each other. He could smell perfectly her perfume, strawberries and morning rain, and suddenly he felt dizzy, especially when Hina stared deeply at his chocolate eyes before ending with their distance, touching his lips with hers while she curled her fingers on his school white shirt pulling him closer. His skin seemed to send directly to her veins a soft electric current while his long fingers traveled through her neck until they twisted itself in her smooth long hair as the other hand went straight to her waist, holding her firmly like he was about to disappear. Her lips shaped into his as they deepened into the kiss and Hina had to slide her arms around his neck, searching for support as she felt her bones melting inside.

After a few minutes like this, they broke apart and stared at each other for a while, smiling in a silly way and twining their fingers together.

"Renji, I have to go now" Hina whispered without looking away from his chocolate orbs.

"Can I walk you home?"

"I'm not going home, I…" she bit her lower lip as she took her bangs out of her eyes. "My dad is waiting for me. We're going to have dinner together"

"Oh, ok. See you tomorrow?" he narrowed, receiving a smile from the short girl that stood on her tip toes to kiss his cheek briefly.

"Sure. Have a good night Renji"

Hina smiled again before turning away and starting to walk to the exit of the school. She never felt so complete and happy like she was feeling now. For the first time, she made her own decision and did what she felt like doing. She couldn't help but giggle when she thought about what Haku would say if he saw that scene. She could almost see his angry face while he pointed a finger to her nose and started his speech about her improper behavior. Thinking about that, she almost missed Renji running and screaming behind her, trying to catch her attention.

"Hina, wait!" he said as he reached her, stopping a few centimeters from where she was "I forgot to tell you something."

"Ok, and what is it?" she smiled at him as she watched him blush and stretch the back of his head

"I was thinking… what do you think about come to the school festival? We could… well, come together."

Hina giggled with his obvious embarrass and nod at him.

"It would be a pleasure"

"Oh, ok. Great! So… see you tomorrow Hina-chan!" he opened a big smile for her, stealing a kiss before running away and leaving Hina standing there with a silly smile on her lips.

* * *

******Bonnie's words: **what a shitty chapter, don't you think? I took like, two months to write it (for the fifth time) and I'm still unhappy with it, but let's move on with the story right? btw, I'm sorry for the long wait! I'm excited to write what's coming after the school festival, which is going to be good (at least I hope so) hahah Thank you sooooo much for those who followed/favorited/reviewed 'Smiling Moon', it makes me really happy (:


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